Air-brake.



PATENTED MAY 10, 1904. H. BALUSS, JR.

AIR BRAKE I APPLIUATION FILED AUG. 20, 1902.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 1- N0 MODEL.

i W1 TNESSES:

A liar/1e y No. 759,226. PATBNTED MAY 10, 1904, H. BALUSS, JR. AIRBRAKE.

APPLICATION FILED AUG 20, 1902.

N0 MODEL.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

W fT/VESSES: [/Vl ENTOA flow 15/ No. 759,226. PATENTED MAY 10, 1904. H. BALUSS, JR.

AIR BRAKE.

APPLICATION FILED AUG. 20, 1902.

N0 MODEL.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

Q a S b I 83 R k WITNESSES: [NI/ENTOR ufwnzfian G/EQZLLGQJ; QM #4400 B PATBNTBD MAY 10, 1904.

m H m NB A BE .A H 6 2 9 5 7 m N APPLIbATION FILED AUG. 20, 1902.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 4 N0 MODEL.

@xi Q22 HAMILTON BALUSS, JR,

Patented May 10, 1904.

PATENT oE WAYNE, MICHIGAN.

AlR-BRAKE.

EBPJEGIFIGATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 759,226, dated May 10, 1904.

Application filed August 20, 1902. Serial No. 120,391. (No model.)

To all whom, it 17 2/04 concern.-

Be it known that I, HAMILTON BALUSS, J r. a citizen of the United States, residing at WVayne, in the county of W ayne and State of Michigan, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Air-Brakes, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to car-brakes of the well-known air or fluid pressure class, and while capable of use upon all classes of cars is especially adapted for use on cars of street or suburban railways.

The object of the invention is to provide improved brake mechanism of the class mentioned in which the admission of pressure into the brake-cylinder is controlled by the pressure in the brake-cylinder and in which varied but determinate pressure may be admitted to the brake-cylinder at any time, which pres sure may be released in varying but determinate amounts at any time with like definite effect.

In the accompanying drawings, which illustrate an embodiment of my invention, Figure 1 represents a plan view of the right-hand portion, and Fig. 2 a similar view of the lefthand portion, of the mechanism removed from the car, each figure showing a portion shown by the other to render the reading of the ligures more easy. Fig. 3 represents a horizontal sectional view through the triple valve. Fig. 1 represents a vertical longitudinal sectional view through the valve-casing on the broken lines IV IV of Fig. 3. Fig. 5 represents a vertical transverse sectional view on the broken line V V of Fig. I. Fig. 6 represents a detail sectional view on the broken line VI VI of Fig. 4. Fig. 7 represents a transverse sectional view on the broken line VII VII of Fig. 2. Fig. 8 represents a transverse sectional view on the broken line VIII VIII of Fig. 2. Fig. 9 represents in elevation the junction of the pressure toggle-levers. Fig. 10

represents a transverse sectional view on the broken line X X of Figs. 1 and. 2. Fig. 11 represents a transverse sectional view on the broken line XI XI of Fig. 1. Fig. 12 represents in elevation the brake-standard, dial, and pulley, the standard being broken out to shorten the figure.

Like numerals indicate the same parts in all the figures.

Referring to the drawings by numerals, 1 indicates a box of any suitable construction and material in which substantially all of the operating mechanism of my brake is located, said box being secured in position on the car by any suitable means. In this box is seen red a block 2, to which block on a pin 3 is loosely pivoted a bar 1. At the opposite end of box 1 is secured a block 5, Fig. 1, to which on a pin 6 is loosely pivoted a bar 7. At the outer end of bar 1 on a pin 8 is loosely pivoted a lever 9, which extends longitudinally to a point 10, where it is bent laterally, being pivotal] y connected at 11 with a longitudinal portion of a lever 12, which at 13 is laterally bent and at its end is loosely pivoted by a pin 1 1 to the bar 7. To the pin 8 is also pivoted a bar 15, through a right-angle flange 16 of which is passed loosely a screw 01' bolt 17, having a nut 18, which bears against said flange. The opposite end of the screw 17 is secured to a block 19, to which are attached the ends of springs 20, preferably four in number, the opposite ends of said springs be ing attached to a block .21, connected by a bent rod 22 to pin 14.

The tension of springs 20 may be regulated by nut 18, and this tension is also exerted upon pins 8 and 14: with a tendency to draw them toward each other, and this force is transmitted by said pins to levers 9 and 12, causing said levers to act as toggle-levers and to exert a continuous lateral pressure at their connecting pivotal point, as at 11, upon a lever 23, loosely connected to the piston-rod 24 of the triple valve by a pin 25 and slot 26,such toggle-lever pressure through lever 23 being continuously exerted upon the piston-rod with a tendency to force the piston-rod inward, as will be hereinafter explained. The lovers 9 and 12 may be single levers or may each be duplicated, as shown in Figs. 9 and 10. The lever 23 has an end projected between theduplicate levers 12 and is always in contact with lever 9.

At 27 a block is secured to the box 1, and to this block a strip 28 is secured by screws, leav ing an intervening space in which the lovers 12 are guided, and said block 27 is also provided with a guideway or seat for a bar 29, which is movable longitudinally therein and passes between the lever 23 and a rigid bar 30, attached to brackets 31, secured by screws 32 to the box 1. In the bar 29 are loosely journaled two rollers 33 and 34, the former of which bears against the bar 30 and the latter against the lever 23, forming its fulcrum, the two rollers bearing against each other also. (See Figs. 7, 8, and 10.) At its opposite end the bar 29 is guided in brackets 35, secured to the box by screws 36, (see Fig. 11,) and a block 37, attached to said bar 29, is rigidly secured to a cable 38, which passes around a pulley 39, journaled in a bracket 40, secured to box 1, (see Fig. 1,) and a pulley 41 on a standard 42, similar to a brake-standard,journaled in suitable bearings in the vestibule of the car, said standard being provided at its upper end (see Fig. 12) with a handle-lever 43, having a pointer 44 adapted when the handle is moved to pass over a suitable graduated scale on a plate or block 45, secured to the car, preferably marked to indicate pounds.

hen the hand-lever is operated, the pulleys are rotated and the bar 29 moved longitudinally by the cable and the roller 34, forming, the fulcrum of, lever 23, is moved toward or from the triple valve, as the case may be. The pressure of toggle-levers 9 and 12 being always the same (when once adjusted) and always exerted at the same point on lever 23, the movement of the fulcrum of said lever changes the amount of force it exerts on the piston-rod of the triple valve, and by the construction just described such pressure is under the direct control of the motorman and can instantly be changed and regulated to an extreme nicety.

The construction of the triple valve is shown in detail in Figs. 3, 4, 5, and 6, in which 46 and 47 indicate the two sections of the casing held together by screws 48 in flanges 49, a cap 50 being secured on casing 47 by screws 51 and a cap 52 to casing 46 by screws 53. The piston-rod 24 at its inner end is secured to a piston 54, made air-tight in casing 46 by a packing-ring 55, held in place by a cap 56, secured to the piston by screws 57. Casing 47 being slightly larger in diameter than casing 46, a seat 58 for emergency-valve flange 59 is formed, and a bow-spring 6O normally holds said flange to its seat. With said flange is formed a tubular body, as at 61, in which is slidably mounted a cylindrical tube 62, which carries a cap 63, in which is secured a movable packing 64, which when the valve is closed contacts with an annular rib on the flange 59. At the opposite end the tube 62 is provided with a cap 66, held thereon by screws 67, and a spring 68, coiled around tube 62 between cap 66 and tubular body 61, holds the emergency-valve closed with packing 64 on rib 65. The service-valve is indicated at 69, its stem 7 O passing through caps 63 and 66 and normally held seated in cap 63 by a spring 71, hearing at one end against said cap and at its opposite end against an annular flange 72, secured on the stem. WVhen both emergency and service valves are closed, the stem 7 0 projects a slight distance through cap 66, so that when piston 54 moves inward it will first open the service-valve. Ports 73 and 74 afford communication between tube 62 and the chambers of the casings, as hereinafter explained.

The casings are secured in place by screws 75 passing through flanges 76, as shown in Figs. 3 and 5. A pipe 77 from the air-reservoir, (not shown,) or it might be from any suitable supply of air or other fluid under pressure, leads into the chamber 78 of casing 47 and a pipe 79 leads from chamber 80 of casing 46 into the brake-cylinder, (not shown,) while an exhaust pipe 81 also leads from chamber 80 through openings 82, Fig. 6, the discharge-openings 83 of said exhaustpipe being regulated by means of a screwcap 84.

The operation of my invention may be described as follows: The maximum pressure desired in the brake-cylinder being ascertained, the tension of springs 20 is regulated by turning nut 18, as before explained, whereby the necessary lateral pressure on bars 9 and 12 at point 11 is obtained. This pressure, however, will have no eifect upon the piston-rod 24 when the fulcrum-rollers are in alinement with point 11, at which time the pointer 44 on the motormans handle-lever 43 is at Zero on the graduated scale on plate 45; but the parts are so arranged that when the handle is turned to bring the pointer opposite any particular number on the scale the pulleys, cable, bar 29, and roller fulcra of lever 23 will be moved to the right point to cause said lever 23 to exert the proper pressure on piston-rod 24 to cause the triple valve to be operated to admit the amount of pressure indicated by the pointer into the brake-cylinder.

The motorman may apply any definite pressure instantly and at will to the piston-rod and may change the same by either increasing or diminishing it quickly and definitely, as he may desire, and these variable but determinate pressures on the piston-rod affect the valves in the following manner: Any pressure thus applied to the piston-rod 24 causes piston 54 to rise, in doing which it contacts with pin 70 of service-valve 69 and raises it off its seat in cap 63, thus permitting pressure from chamber 78 (always in communication by pipe 7 '7 with pressure supply or reservoir) to pass into tube 62 and thence through ports 74 to chamber 80, pipe 79, and the brakecylinder, where it has the usual effect upon the brake-rigging. The pressure thus admitted to chamber 80 acts upon piston 54 in direct opposition to the pressure applied to the piston through lever 23, and as a consequence as soon as the stated or set pressure is reached in the brake-cylinder and chamber 80 the further admission of pressure from chamber 78 through the service-valve will force piston 5 outward and allow the pressure in chamber 7 8 and the spring 71 to close said servicevalve, thus rendering impossible the admission of any excess over the indicated pressure into the brake-cylinder. Thus all ordinary pressures requisite for service applications Will only operate the service-valve; but when an emergency application is necessary the motorman at once turns his handle until the pointer indicates a pressure sufliciently high to not only press the piston in far enough to open the service-valve, but also to continue the inward movement of the piston against the pressure of spring 68 and any pressure in chamber 80 until the tubular emergency-valve is moved inward, moving cap 63, raising packing 64 off its seat, and admitting pressure through ports 73, tube 62, ports 74, chamber 80, and pipe 79 to the brake-cylinder. The continued admission of pressure in the emergency application has the same effect as described with reference to the service application, and as soon as the indicated pressure is admitted to the brake-cylinder any excess of pressure will move the piston outward, thus closing the valves and cutting off the supply of air.

In any application any decrease of pressure in the brake-cylinder below the desired set pressure will always cause the piston to open the valve (service or emergency, as the case may be) until the indicated pressure is supplied, when the valve will be automatically closed, as before described, thus always maintaining the exact determinate pressure in the brake-cylinder.

In exhausting the pressure from the brakecylinder the motorman moves the pointer to any desired point in the direction of Zero, thus decreasing pressure of lever 23 on the pistonrod and causing the piston to move outward and uncover ports 82, thus permitting pressure to exhaust through pipe 81 until it is reduced suliicicntly in chamber 80 to permit the piston to return under pressure of lever 23 and close said ports 82, thus shutting off the exhaust. The passage of the exhaust-pressure from pipe 81 is regulated by increasing the capacity of ports 83 by means of screwcaps 84. Thus the motorman may at any time reduce the pressure in the brake-cylinder to any desired and determinate extent by simply moving the handle toward zero on the scale any distance necessary.

Any of the described operations may be continued at will. The exhaust movement may be continued either quickly or gradually until all of the air in the brake-cylinder is exhausted. Any number of applications (either service or emergency) may be made at any time and continued in any numbers or in any proportions With any numbers or proportions of total or partial releases, thus giving perfeet control over the cars at all times.

The triple valve is placed as near the brakecylinder as possible, thus requiring only short piping between them to economize pressure.

Only a small amount of power is required to operate the brake, the movable roller-fulcra being as near frictionless as possible, and the brake will always maintain itself in any position in which it is left without using pawls or ratchet-wheels.

Any excess of pressure in the brake-cylinder is automatically released and any deficit automatically supplied, thus always insuring the exactly-determined pressure in the brakecylinder, no matter whether the travel is long or short or the brake-rigging taut or slack.

Having thus fully described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is-

1. The combination, in an air-brake, of a brake-cylinder, an air-supply, a triple valve having a piston and a piston-rod and a pivoted lever contacting with the outer end of the piston-rod and means for exerting varied but determinate pressures upon the piston-rod by said lever, substantially as described.

2. The combination, in an air-brake, of a brake-cylinder, an air-supply, a triple valve having a piston and a piston-rod, and a pivoted lever contacting with the pistonrod, and manually-operated means for exerting pressure upon said lever at different distances from its fulcrum, substantially as described.

3. The combination in an air-brakc, With the brake-cylinder, the air-supply, and the triple valve having a piston and a piston-rod, of a pivoted lever which engages with the piston-rod, and manually-operated means for moving the fulcrum of the beam to points at different distances from the piston-rod, substantially as described.

4. The combination, in an air-brake, with the triple valve, its piston and piston-rod, of a pivoted lever engaging the piston-rod, means for exerting pressure thereon at a distance from the piston-rod, a movable fulcrum for the pivoted lever, and means for moving the fulcrum to determined points between the pressure-point and the piston-rod, substantially as described.

5. The combination in an air-brake, with the triple valve, its piston and piston-rod, of a lever engaging the piston-rod, means for exerting pressure thereon at a distance from the piston-rod, a bar, a fulcrum for the lever carried by said bar, and manually-operated means for moving the bar in the direction of. the length of the lever, substantially as described.

6. The combination, in an air-brake, with the brake-cylinder, the air-supply, and the triple valve having a-piston and a piston-rod, of a pivoted lever which engages the pistonrod, a fulcrum movable in the direction of the length of the lever and manually-operated means for exerting pressure upon the lever at different distances from its fulcrum, substantially as described.

7. The combination, in an air-brake, with the brake-cylinder, the air-supply, and the triple valve having a piston and a piston-rod, of a pivoted lever engaging the piston-rod, pressure-rods operating against one edge of the lever, and a fulcrum for the lever on its opposite edge, movable in the direction of its length, substantially as described.

8. The combination, in an air-brake, with the brake-cylinder, the air-supply and the triple valve having a piston and a piston-rod, of an ordinary handbrake standard and handle, a pivoted lever engaging the piston-rod, and means controlled by the brake-handle, for exerting varied but determinate pressures on the piston-rod by said lever, substantially as described.

9. The combination, in an air-brake, with the brake-cylinder, the air-supply and the triple valve having a piston and a piston-rod, of an ordinary hand-brake standard and handle, a pivoted lever engaging the piston-rod, and means controlled by the brake-handle, for exerting pressure upon said beam at different distances from its pivot, substantially as described.

10. The combination, in an air-brake, with the brake-cylinder, the air-supply, and triple valve having a piston and a piston-rod, of a pivoted lever engaging the piston-rod, a longitudinally-movable bar, a fulcrum for the lever carried by said bar, and manually-controlled means for moving said bar, substantially as described.

11. The combination in an air-brake, with the brake-cylinder, the air-supply, and the triple valve having a piston and a piston-rod, of a pivoted lever engaging the piston-rod, a longitudinally-movable bar, a fulcrum for the lever carried by said bar, a hand-brake standard and handle, a pulley on said standard, a second pulley and a cord passing around said pulleys and connected to the movable bar, substantially as described.

12. The combination in an air-brake, with the triple-valve piston-rod, of a pivoted lex er connected with the end thereof. a longitudinally-movable bar, pressure devices carried thereby acting against said beam, a pivoted bar and a spring-stop secured thereto serving as a cushion for the pivoted beam at the serviceapplication piston, substantially as described.

13. The combination, in an air-brake, with the triple valve, its piston and piston-rod, of a pivoted lever engaging the piston-rod, a pair of toggle-levers engaging at their joint with said levers, and means for drawing the free ends of the toggle-levers toward each other, substantially as described.

14. The combination, in an air-brake, with the triple valve, its piston and piston-rod, of a pivoted lever engaging the piston-rod, a pair of toggle-levers engaging at their joint with said lever, and yielding means for drawing the free ends of the toggle-levers toward each other, substantially as described.

15. The combination, in an air-brake, with the triple valve, its piston and piston-rod, of a pivoted lever engaging the piston-rod, a pair of toggle-levers engaging at their joint with said lever, and pivoted bars loosely pivoted to fixed supports and to the free ends of said toggle-levers, and means for drawing the free ends of the toggle-levers toward each other, substantially as described.

l6. In an air-brake, the combination, with the triple valve its piston and piston-rod, of a fixed support, two bars pivoted thereto, toggle-levers pivoted to the ends of said pivoted bars, springs between the free ends of the toggle-levers, means for regulating their tension,

and a pivoted lever engaging the toggle-levers at their joint, and also engaging the piston-rod, substantially as described.

17. The combination in an air-brake, with the triple valve, its piston, and piston-rod, of a lever engaging the piston-rod, means for exerting pressure thereon, a longitudinallymovable bar, a fixed bar parallel thereto, and rollers journaled in the longitudinally-movable rod bearing on the fixed rod and lever respectively and serving as a fulcrum for the lever, substantially as described.

18. The combination, in an air-brake, with the triple valve, its piston, and piston-rod, of a lever engaging the piston-rod, means for exerting pressure thereon, a longitudinally-movable bar, a fixed bar parallel thereto, and rollers journaled in the longitudinally-movable rod having rolling contact with each other, bearing on the fixed rod and lever respectively, and serving as a fulcrum for the lever, substantially as described.

19. in an air-brake, a triple valve comprising a casing in two sections of different interior diameters, joined longitudinally, the end of the narrower casing forming a seat, a tubular body in the casing provided with aflange adapted to engage said seat dividing the interior into two chambers, a tube sliding in said tubular body having ports communicating with both chambers respectively and an interior valve in said tube controlling communication between one chamber and the interior of the tube, substantially as described.

20. The combination, in an airbrake, with the brake-cylinder, air-supply reservoir, and triple valve, having a piston and a pistonrod, of a pivoted lever engaging the pistonrod, a yielding pressure device acting against the lever, a fulcrum for the lever, and means for moving the fulcrum toward or from the pressure device, substantially as described.

21. In an air-brake, a triple valve provided with two chambers communicating respectively with the pressure-supply and brakecylinder, and a tubular emergenci -valve slidable in the division between said chambers having two sets of ports communicating between its interior and the respective chambers, and a service-valve slidable in the emergency-valve and seated in the end thereof in the pressure-chamber, substantially as described.

22. In an air-brake, a triple valve provided with two chambers communicating respectively with the pressure-supply and brakecylinder, and a tubular emergency-valve slidable in the division between said chambers having two sets of ports communicating between its interior and the respective chambers, and capped. at each end, and a servicevalve slidable in the emergency-Valve and HAMILTON BALUSS, JR.

1n presence of- EDITH F. BALUss, BARBARA BALUss. 

